Trump fires hardline national security adviser Bolton

FILE PHOTO: US national security adviser John Bolton gestures as he meets with journalists during a visit to London, Britain August 12, 2019. REUTERS

US President Donald Trump abruptly fired his national security adviser John Bolton, saying on Tuesday he had serious policy disagreements with his hardline aide.

"I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House. I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration," Trump tweeted, adding that he would name a replacement next week.

Bolton, a leading foreign policy hawk who was Trump's third national security adviser, was widely known to have pressed the president for a harder line on issues such as North Korea. Bolton, also a chief architect of Trump's strong stance on Iran, had advocated a tougher approach on Russia and Afghanistan.

Bolton, who took up the post in April 2018, replacing HR McMaster, had sometimes been at odds with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, one of Trump's main loyalists.

Offering a different version of events than Trump, Bolton tweeted: "I offered to resign last night and President Trump said, "Let's talk about it tomorrow."

Trump had sometimes joked about Bolton's image as a warmonger, reportedly saying in one Oval Office meeting that "John has never seen a war he doesn't like."